Reproductive biology of two hydrothermal vent Cocculinidae species (Mollusca: Gastropoda) from the Arctic and Southern Ocean
Reproductive biology of two hydrothermal vent Cocculinidae species (Mollusca: Gastropoda) from the Arctic and Southern Ocean
The ecology of hydrothermal vents in polar oceans is less known than other regions, as a consequence of the logistical challenges of deep-sea fieldwork at high latitudes, and particularly under permanent ice cover in the Arctic. This paper describes the reproductive biology of the first two cocculinid gastropods sampled from hydrothermal vents: Cocculina enigmadonta from Kemp Caldera, in the Southern Ocean, and Cocculina aurora (Chen et al., Royal Soc Open Sci, https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.220885, 2022) from the Aurora Vent Field, Gakkel Ridge, in the Central Arctic Ocean. Histological analysis was used to describe oogenesis, size at first reproduction and fecundity, whilst individual size-frequency distributions from morphometric measurements were produced to investigate demographic population structure. Both species exhibited similar gametogenic patterns with all but three individuals possessing all oocyte developmental stages. Cocculina enigmadonta and C. aurora had similar reproductive strategies, exhibiting low fecundities. For C. enigmadonta the mean fecundity was 16.1 ± 9.3 mature oocytes and for C. aurora 4.1 ± 2.4 mature oocytes. Gametogenic maturity, mean oocyte diameter and instantaneous fecundity were statistically significantly different between species. Overall, both species presented asynchronous reproduction, quasi-continuous gametogenesis and discontinuous recruitment. Importantly, our results provide the first account of the reproductive biology of cocculinid species from hydrothermal vents and discuss their adaptive life-history traits to inhabiting unstable vent environments.
Cocculina, Deep ocean, Fecundity, Oogenesis, Recruitment
MacNeil, Christopher
1944c0ba-30aa-476f-ab61-f6065bd5c4f3
Baker, Maria
8f846767-b3d5-4e48-b22f-3ead26a56f6d
Copley, Jon
5f30e2a6-76c1-4150-9a42-dcfb8f5788ef
Tyler, Paul
d1965388-38cc-4c1d-9217-d59dba4dd7f8
Hilario, Ana
ba55873b-030e-49c0-9c53-b76fb234fa18
Ramirez-Llodra, Eva
3797327a-1bca-44a6-9462-198249b9d20e
13 June 2025
MacNeil, Christopher
1944c0ba-30aa-476f-ab61-f6065bd5c4f3
Baker, Maria
8f846767-b3d5-4e48-b22f-3ead26a56f6d
Copley, Jon
5f30e2a6-76c1-4150-9a42-dcfb8f5788ef
Tyler, Paul
d1965388-38cc-4c1d-9217-d59dba4dd7f8
Hilario, Ana
ba55873b-030e-49c0-9c53-b76fb234fa18
Ramirez-Llodra, Eva
3797327a-1bca-44a6-9462-198249b9d20e
MacNeil, Christopher, Baker, Maria, Copley, Jon, Tyler, Paul, Hilario, Ana and Ramirez-Llodra, Eva
(2025)
Reproductive biology of two hydrothermal vent Cocculinidae species (Mollusca: Gastropoda) from the Arctic and Southern Ocean.
Marine Biology, 172 (7), [114].
(doi:10.1007/s00227-025-04648-x).
Abstract
The ecology of hydrothermal vents in polar oceans is less known than other regions, as a consequence of the logistical challenges of deep-sea fieldwork at high latitudes, and particularly under permanent ice cover in the Arctic. This paper describes the reproductive biology of the first two cocculinid gastropods sampled from hydrothermal vents: Cocculina enigmadonta from Kemp Caldera, in the Southern Ocean, and Cocculina aurora (Chen et al., Royal Soc Open Sci, https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.220885, 2022) from the Aurora Vent Field, Gakkel Ridge, in the Central Arctic Ocean. Histological analysis was used to describe oogenesis, size at first reproduction and fecundity, whilst individual size-frequency distributions from morphometric measurements were produced to investigate demographic population structure. Both species exhibited similar gametogenic patterns with all but three individuals possessing all oocyte developmental stages. Cocculina enigmadonta and C. aurora had similar reproductive strategies, exhibiting low fecundities. For C. enigmadonta the mean fecundity was 16.1 ± 9.3 mature oocytes and for C. aurora 4.1 ± 2.4 mature oocytes. Gametogenic maturity, mean oocyte diameter and instantaneous fecundity were statistically significantly different between species. Overall, both species presented asynchronous reproduction, quasi-continuous gametogenesis and discontinuous recruitment. Importantly, our results provide the first account of the reproductive biology of cocculinid species from hydrothermal vents and discuss their adaptive life-history traits to inhabiting unstable vent environments.
Text
s00227-025-04648-x
- Version of Record
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 29 April 2025
Published date: 13 June 2025
Keywords:
Cocculina, Deep ocean, Fecundity, Oogenesis, Recruitment
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 503646
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/503646
ISSN: 0025-3162
PURE UUID: 2fbe6ccd-c54e-450c-9fa9-7d731ca80fe8
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 07 Aug 2025 16:52
Last modified: 22 Aug 2025 01:41
Export record
Altmetrics
Contributors
Author:
Christopher MacNeil
Author:
Ana Hilario
Author:
Eva Ramirez-Llodra
Download statistics
Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.
View more statistics
